Watch a rescued sea turtle return home to the Gulf near Bon Secour

Kemp's ridley sea turtle released into the wild at Bon Secour: May 21, 2014A Kemp's ridley sea turtle is released back into the wild near Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge on Wednesday, May 21, 2014. The turtle was hooked by a fisherman off the Alabama coast and rehabilitated at the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. (Dennis Pillion | dpillion@al.com)

GULF SHORES, Alabama -- Volunteers who've spent countless hours helping Alabama's sea turtle population got to watch a success story unfold before their eyes Wednesday, as an endangered Kemp's ridley sea turtle was released back into the Gulf nearly a month after being hooked by a fisherman off the Alabama coast.

The fisherman called Alabama's sea turtle hotline, 1-866-SEA-TURT, after realizing the turtle was caught on a treble hook on April 26. From there, members of the Alabama Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network picked up the turtle and transported it to the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park, where veterinarians removed the hook and monitored the turtle until it was ready to be released back into the wild, just west of the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge off Fort Morgan Road.

"We brought the turtle back here to release him because this is close to where he was caught," said Gulfarium sea turtle stranding coordinator Rachel Cain. "Plus, it gives the volunteers a chance to see the positive results of what they're doing."

According to a Gulfarium press release, this was "a perfect example" of what to do if you accidentally hook a sea turtle while fishing.

"Rather than attempting to remove the hook themselves, or cutting the line and releasing the turtle with a hook in its mouth, (fishermen should) call the authorities," the release said. "The same goes for stranded turtles on the beach or in distress."

Cain said the juvenile turtle is between 5 and 10 years old, still too young to determine whether it is male or female. Thus, the rehabilitation team gave it the gender-neutral and geographically-appropriate nickname "Bama."

Several volunteers from Share the Beach and the stranding network were present for the release, as well as a few curious on-lookers from the community. Share the Beach volunteers walk the beaches in their area shortly after sunrise each day during nesting season looking for signs of a nest.

When found, nests are marked and monitored until they are ready to hatch. Upon hatching, volunteers make sure the baby turtles reach the Gulf instead of mistakenly crawling toward artificial light sources on land.

Share the Beach director Mike Reynolds said that two nests have been marked already this year, one just a few hundred yards down the beach from the site of Wednesday's release. For more information on Share the Beach or other conservation efforts, visit www.alabamaseaturtles.com.